Quetta, Aug 30 (IANS) Balochistan’s provincial government extended the imposition of Section 144 across the province for another 15 days, citing the prevailing law and order situation, according to an official notification of the Home Department, local media reported.

According to the notification issued by the Additional Chief Secretary of the Home Department on Friday under Section 144, there is a complete prohibition on the display and use of weapons, riding pillion, using vehicles with tinted glass, unregistered motorbikes, and gatherings, sit-ins, processions, and rallies of five or more persons.

The directive also banned covering of faces in public places, especially through the use of mufflers, masks, or any other means that obstruct identification.

Addressing a press conference at Quetta Press Club, National Democratic Party’s (NDP) central spokesperson Shahzeb Baloch described the imposition of restrictions on political and democratic paths as unconstitutional, adding that it amounts to strangling justice.

He alleged that political activists from Balochistan and other oppressed groups across the country are not only harassed but also subjected to detention through serious tactics such as enforced disappearance.

Shahzeb said that the main objective of the press conference is to draw the attention of the Pakistani government to ensure the recovery of all Baloch and other oppressed people, including NDP members, Balochistan Post reported.

He stressed that any accusation against a political activist should be addressed in court as per the law. However, he said, collective punishment of the entire community through enforced disappearance constitutes ethnic and national cleansing, and reflects a colonial mindset.

Meanwhile, tension ran high in Zawah and Zehri areas near Khuzdar district in Balochistan on the Quetta-Karachi highway after protesters blocked the highway and staged a sit-in. The demonstration continued for the second consecutive day on Friday following the kidnapping of passengers from a wagon travelling from Hub Chowki to Khuzdar.

Reports suggest that recently, Pakistani forces intercepted a wagon travelling from Hub Chowki to Khuzdar, forcibly removing women and children, while taking male passengers and the vehicle to an unknown location.

Local leader Baba Fateh Zehri told reporters over the phone that the Khuzdar Assistant Commissioner and Levies (law enforcement agency) personnel attempted to end the peaceful protest by force, resorting to gunfire and tear gas, injuring two passengers. He alleged that Levies personnel also mistreated women and assaulted the youths.

Fateh urged the people of the Zehri region to join the sit-in in maximum numbers to thwart the “excesses” of the Khuzdar administration.

–IANS

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